Senator Rand Paul is not betting that his time on the stage during the Republican presidential debate on Wednesday night will be enough to get his message out and re-energize his campaign. So he is buying time on CNN, the network hosting the debate, so he can run an ad during the commercial breaks.

CNN is charging a steep $200,000 for 30 seconds of commercial time in the debate, some 40 times its usual price for prime time ads, as Ad Age reported first earlier this month. That price is so elevated that Donald Trump argued CNN should give away the "massive profits," to veterans' groups.

But Senator Paul hasn't purchased an ad on CNN, exactly: The ad is running in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, the Times reported, meaning it has to be a local buy from regional cable and satellite TV companies, not the kind of national advertising CNN sells. A person familiar with the ad confirmed that the Paul campaign hasn't bought a debate ad from CNN.

A spokesman for Senator Paul confirmed that the ad will run in "numerous early states during the debate" but did not answer when asked whether it was bought from CNN or local companies. A CNN spokeswoman declined to comment.

Of course, it's possible the local pay-TV companies also charged a higher-than-usual rate for the highly anticipated debate, but at least the campaign didn't have to shell out for the whole country.

Here's the ad:

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Jeanine Poggi

Jeanine Poggi covers the TV industry and how broadcast and cable networks and distributors are adopting to the changes in the world of TV advertising. She joined Ad Age in 2012, following six years covering the retail and media industries and other financial sectors for Women's Wear Daily, Forbes and TheStreet.